Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1: The Kids are All Grown Up!

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In the opening scene gloom and melancholy loom over Harry and his pals. The scent of danger and proximity of death fill the air. Your heart is in your mouth as an adrenaline pumped chase ensues and a very dear friend of Potter & Potter fans, Hedwig, Harry’s owl, suffers excruciatingly. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 crams in nearly half of Rowling’s 759 pages and the story hurls forward with twists and hurried descriptions of the very detailed novel (in one scene Harry explains a crucial detail of a wand to Hermione while under attack!) Potter fans will enjoy the rush and wallop up the details but others might be lost and tune out. Nevertheless, Warner Bros. made a wise decision to split the book and milk its cash cow. The Potter franchise that has been entertaining fans for over a decade will no doubt turn up and have Warner laughing all the way to the bank.

Suspense. Action. Emotion. Romance. Jealously. Drama. It’s all there and how! The build up to next year’s finale is so intense; it’ll have you crave for it now. You’ll catch glimpses of Professor Severus Snape (Alan Rickman), Hagrid (Robbie Coltrane), Alastor Moody (Brendan Gleeson) and the late Professor Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon). A surprise awaits in Dumbledore’s grave. His student Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) is stamped out as “Undesirable #1” while Voldemort gains supremacy and takes over the Ministry of Magic. It’s upto Harry, Hermione (Emma Watson) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) to find the Horcruxes, the source of Voldemort’s immortality, and destroy them. Their search leads them to the Ministry where an anti-muggle campaign is reminiscent of Nazi Germany. The trio separate from their loved ones for the sake of their own safety and hide in the quiet, dark yet scenic woods. The kids have now grown-up. A steamy kiss between nude Harry and Hermione, Ron’s frustrations, their insecurities and intense sexual tensions has us convinced that they are now young adults.

Radcliffe, Grint and Watson are perfectly cast as the seventeen year olds who under the dark reign of Voldemort are forced to grow-up early. They have grown all as actors as well and Grint in particular has a substantial and demanding chunk where his acting prowess gleams in its glory. Stunning Ms. Watson emerges as quite the head-turner while Radcliffe matures like wine, better with every film! (Ladies, watch out for Radcliffe showing off his cut physique as he strips off his shirt!)

In his third Potter flick (after Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince), director David Yates keeps with the book’s somber deathly tone. Instead of ending on the action packed climax and moving anticlimax, he leaves you in a scene that shows how truly perilous Harry’s situation is. As the credits roll you wonder how long you’ll have to wait for the next film!